Many of us know former Cadets that, for one reason or another, left Greenbrier Military School before completing the graduation they originally came there to achieve. My own roommate for my first two out of three years, Jack Zirkle '55, left after his Sophomore year (his own decision) and went on to graduate from his hometown high school. He later said leaving was the biggest mistake he made in his life, but also said it was what he took with him from GMS that made him the successful man that he was. Antonio Higuera Freiria did not have a choice of leaving or staying. He had to leave before he wanted to, but, like Jack Zirkle, he went on to become very successful in life due to what he took with him from GMS. The story you will read below was written by Antonio's son, Tony, who could not go to GMS because it no longer existed; however, Tony not only benefited from going to the Florida Air Academy, a military school much like GMS, but he benefited from GMS as well as you will see in the story below. I will add at this point that Lieutenant Colonel Tony Higuera is retired from the United States Air Force after 26 years in the service of our Nation. Colonel Higuera is a much decorated Air Force Officer who holds the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal with five oak leaf clusters, the Air Medal, the Aerial Achievement Medal with one oak leaf cluster, the Joint Service Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster and many more. He was awarded Outstanding Young Men in America in 1988 and 1989, and American Red Cross Volunteer of the Year at the U. S. Naval Hospital, Okinawa, Japan. Colonel Higuera is a Master Air Battle Manager with more than 2,600 hours in the E-3 B/C Airborne Warning and Control System and E-8C Joint STARS including 321 combat hours in support of Operation ALLIED FORCE and IRAQI FREEDOM as a Mission Commander in Joint STARS. His flying and operational experience is global. He has deployed in support of major US operations and exercises in the United States, Far East, Pacific, Central America, South America, Caribbean, Middle East, the United Kingdom and Eastern Europe. Colonel Higuera currently resides in Missoula, Montana, and is married to the former Elaine Harlow. They have a daughter, Dominique who is 13 years old, and a son, Anthony (TJ) who is 6 years old.

Prologue by Tony Higuera, Lt Col, USAF-Ret

First, I want to thank James E. "Deak" Roberts Jr. '56 and Herb Pearis '56 for the great honor of allowing me to pay tribute to my father's life by writing his biography. Also, I want to thank Mr. Pearis for putting me in contact with Don Richmond '52, now retired in Florida, who remembers my dad. Don was in 8th grade when my dad was a Junior at GMS. They both smoked cigarettes and that is how he remembers him because Don used to "go around and bum cigarettes off all the upper classmen." Don also sent me yearbook pictures of my Dad that I had never seen.

Antonio Higuera Freiria: This is the biography of a common, imperfect man who was neither famous nor well known by many but to his family. His life was not heroic by our current societal way to measure heroism, but to me, his son, he was a hero. He influenced my life in many ways; he is the reason why I consider my life so far as a great success. He instilled the values of hard work, honesty, perseverance, loyalty, self-accountability and love for God, family and Country. He was not born a U.S. citizen, but he considered himself a very patriotic American, while still being proud of his Spanish heritage. In my opinion, his life was defined by two major events. One was the death of his father, whom he loved dearly, when he was just 12 years old; a death that he sadly witnessed with his own eyes in the afternoon of 25 December 1944. I remember Dad telling me that the Christmas tree was removed to make way for his father's casket. How sad for a young man to witness such a terrible event on Christmas Day. The other defining event was the two (2) years he spent as a Cadet at Greenbrier Military School (GMS). Dad loved GMS. He spoke to me of GMS many times. He was proud to have been a Cadet. He enjoyed the sense of belonging to something bigger than himself; a place that gave him values by which he could live his life. But his dream of graduating from GMS was halted/shattered when his Mother just ran out of money and had to withdraw him half-way through his Junior year. Dad was the oldest of three boys and there was just not enough money to take care of all three kids. He had to return home and become the man of the house. This was a heavy blow to Dad, but one that directly had a positive effect on me many years later. This is not only the biography of a former GMS Cadet, but the story of how his two and half years at GMS influenced my life. This is very powerful and speaks volumes on how GMS positively influenced its young men, the positive effects the institution had on a former Cadet's Son almost 30 years later.

Dad was born in the capital of the Province of Albacete, Spain in 1932. The Spanish Civil War fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939 had a major impact on my father's family. The war ended with the victory of the Nationalists, the overthrow of the Republican Government, and the founding of an authoritarian state led by General Francisco Franco. The Nationalists received the support of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. After the War ended in 1939, the losing Republicans were persecuted by the victorious Nationalists. Dad's Father, Antonio Higuera Monje, was from Tobarra, a municipality in the province of Albacete, and a well-known hard core Republican in Albacete. Because of the persecution, the family fled to Puerto Rico where Dad's mother had family. Once in Puerto Rico the family settled in San Juan where Dad's Father started an import/export business. Dad's two younger brothers were born in San Juan. On 25 December 1944 Dad's father passed due to a massive heart attack at the age of 50. Dad was 12 years old and his brothers were 7 and 4.

In 1948, Dad entered GMS. The details on how he went from Puerto Rico to GMS are not known to me. I do remember him showing me a small scar he had in his leg from a ricochet bullet that struck him while working the pit in the rifle firing range. Prior to his premature departure from GMS, he held the position of Second Squad Assistant Squad Leader, 1st Platoon, Company C. Again, his early departure from GMS was a blow to dad. He truly loved the place.

He returned to San Juan and started working as a salesman traveling all over the island. In 1955, he attended the Television Workshop of New York, and then had a stint working in television as a Director and Cameraman for a local TV station in San Juan. He married and had 3 children (one girl, two boys). Soon after the birth of his third child, that marriage ended. The reason for the split is not known to me.

Dad was a high school graduate with some University training in marketing; still, he reached the Executive level at age 23, after 2 years as a salesman for a battery company, where he became a Sales Manager. In 1960, he met my Mother and soon after they were married. At the time my father was working as Executive Sales Manager for a Volkswagen dealership. I was born on Oct 29, 1961 and my sister in 1963. Dad continued working in sales and soon landed a job as the District Sales Manager for Puerto Rico and the Caribbean at Johnson and Johnson.

In 1971, at age 38, while an executive at Johnson and Johnson, Dad was struck with a massive heart attack while attending a management convention in San Juan. I was 10 years old. It was a very scary event in life for me and the family. History almost repeated itself again. During most of his career, Dad had successfully taken on positions of authority and responsibility. He was used to working long hours; 12 to 14 hour days were common. No one believes he can become disabled or even be so close to dying when he's young, but many years of smoking and an unhealthy lifestyle took a toll on his body. That he survived the heart attack was a true miracle. While in the hospital, he was shocked back to life several times and a temporary pacemaker was inserted. The first year after his heart attack was the most difficult period of adjustment. He went from 19 years of working hard, leading people in the sales industry, and working long hours, to being at home taking care of his health and wondering how he was going to support his family with a social security check which amounted to just a fraction of what he was making as an Executive for a chemical company.